Flock of sheep flying across the city: Poetic work by Huynh Trong Khang

The work opens with the image of a snail crawling slowly, reminiscent of a haiku by Kobayashi Issa:

“Slowly, slowly

Look at the little snail!

"Climbing Mount Fuji" (Nhat Chieu translation).

The boy dreams of becoming a poet

“From the image of the snail crawling slowly, I wanted to write about a boy's journey to find beauty in everyday life, a beauty of poetry” - writer Huynh Trong Khang shared the inspiration for writing the story The Flock of Sheep Flying Over the City.

That is the little boy who at the age of 5 expressed his dream of growing up to become a poet in the love of his parents - parents who support their child unconditionally "as long as the boy is happy". The beautiful world surrounding the boy also has the color of easy-to-feel fairy tales with rich images and characters such as the Sun, Mr. Fly, the stuffed cat, the Summer Cricket...

“I know I still have to read a lot, study a lot, see the world more to be able to write a poem that embraces the world in my heart” - quoted from page 152 of The Flock of Lambs Flying Over the City.

The boy grew up with his retired teacher, who worked hard in a garden full of flowers and grass; went out with his third uncle, aka “The Great Bear”, who had a hobby of collecting antiques, was knowledgeable about languages, music and loved poetry; listened to his twin uncles Son and San, who loved pets, tell stories; and was encouraged by his aunt Vu, who loved fine arts and painted beautiful pictures and encouraged him “not to wait but to pursue his dream” of becoming a poet.

We are all a poem

When his father was unfairly fired from the company, causing him to fall into “spiritual tragedy”, he was suggested to write a poem to comfort his father. In fact, his father was a talented cook and had shown the Mi Gia family how to cook delicious noodles. “Everything in life that comes from love is successful” (page 137) - with that belief, perhaps his father would have a new job and good work opportunities.

Like Saint-Exupéry's "Little Prince", the boy also kept a pure, dreamy childish soul, with an imagination that "rose high above the narrow city buildings", flying far out into space, where there were flocks of sheep with white wool like clouds to "go to the end of the heart of the universe, to find what he loved so much".

The work conveys: “The world needs poets. They write to record every moment, so that memories will last forever. Because time is eternal, but memories will age and fade…” Meanwhile, the world is vast, “there are many places we do not know, many mysteries yet to be discovered ”.

“If there is a specific wish the author wants to convey in these words, it is to hope that it is like a snail slowly crawling with children on a journey to discover poetic dreams in this modern life” - writer Trong Khang shared.

In the age of technology and ChatGPT, do children still need poetry?

- Writer HUYNH TRONG KHANG: I think not only children but also adults can find the beauty of life through poetry, and more broadly, literature and art. In the age of technology and artificial intelligence, that is even more important.

Our world today worships speed too much, from moving fast, to watching movies, reading books also want to be fast... while love always requires patience. Slow here does not mean leisurely but slower while everything is rushing too fast, just like parents want their children not to rush to grow up so they can enjoy their childhood to the fullest.
long time

Cam Diep

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/dong-nai-cuoi-tuan/202504/bay-cuu-bay-ngang-thanh-pho-tac-pham-nen-tho-cua-huynh-trong-khang-6605249/